In many technical fields a text control or voice-supported control is already being employed today. A text control enables a user to input commands into a system by means of predetermined text modules (such as a word or word sequence). This field also covers search queries, writing and sending of text messages etc., which are undertaken by text input and mostly by a following confirmation.
A voice-supported control enables a user to input control commands or other information—such as, for example, settings, parameters etc.—by means of spoken words or, to be more exact, language. This facilitates the input, to the effect that the user does not have to operate any conventional input means such as, for example, keyboard, function keys, selection tools etc.
Technical fields in which such speech inputs already find application are, inter alia, mobile telephones, vehicle control devices and also navigation instruments. The user can, for example, input contacts from an address book, controls of certain vehicle elements or destination addresses by targeted voice commands. The vehicle control system encompasses, inter alia, the switching on/off, adapting or adjusting of vehicle elements such as, for example, windscreen wipers, temperature (heating and air-conditioning system), interior lighting, seats, etc.
In US Patent Application No. 2008/0312934 A1 a speech-recognition system is described which comes into operation for certain applications. These applications encompass a navigation application, messaging application, music application, search application for (stored) contents and local search application. In the case of use with a navigation application, a navigation-related content may have been stored in a database and may be used by a speech-recognition device. For example, a speech-recognition device may use the navigation-related content in order to influence a speech-recognition model. In this connection various speech models may come into operation, which have been adapted to a corresponding application.
According to the disclosure of US 2008/0312934 A1, various applications may have recourse to or may use a speech-recognition device, in order to simplify inputs for the corresponding application for the user. In addition, the use of various speech models permits the speech recognition to be employed for certain expressions, words or commands, specifically for the defined application. However, this has the disadvantage that a further adaptation of the speech models has to take place individually. For example, a certain term would have to be trained for each speech model.